Sep6
Matthew 3:9………Ready
And do not think (imagine, presume, take for granted, flatter/fancy) you can say to yourselves, (Expresses introspection of the mind in the way defending or quieting a guilty conscience by excusing or justifying oneself.) ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ (John seems to anticipate an objection, thinking their ancestry from Abraham will Save them.) I tell you that out of these stones (Gentiles, sinners, hardheartedness) God can raise up children for Abraham. (Viz. People of faith, holiness, obedience.)
Continued From Book
“Calls for trusting in Christ alone for Salvation, and not in our Christian upbringing, baptism, or Church membership.” ⇒ You can’t ride on the coattails of your parents or another person’s faith…….(To be Continued)
“Teaches how many rely on religion as their connection to God.” (For many their church, membership, or their financial contribution is what is maintaining their link to God.)” ⇒ The Pharisees & Sadducees are a great lesson to all of us who tend to rely on anything for Salvation other than the grace & mercy of God. (cf. Luke 18:9-14, Eph. 2:8-9, Rom 3:20-24, 9:15-16, 2-Tim. 1:9) (Note: Religious piety is an excellent smokescreen. Tireless service and “good works” make wonderful camouflage netting. The point being: “Perform whatever you must to avoid admitting you’re a mess on the inside”.)
“Displays the grace and power of God in Saving the most hardened sinners from the most unlikely places.” ⇒ That there is no sinner so wicked or sin so great that God cannot Save and forgive. This verse should gives us hope in seeing family and friends Saved. That God can Redeem the most unlikely person, and Save the vilest sinner! (cf. 1-Tim. 1:15-16)
“Even today, many people think they’re good with God because they go to church, or their parents were Christians, or they were raised in a Christian home. What are you trusting or taking refuge in. Is it your religious heritage, your rituals, your good deeds, following rules, comparing yourself with others. Or is it your reputation, your church membership, your good parenting?
Additional Notes & Applications
Warns how religion can keep you from truly repenting and dealing with the core issues of the heart. That’s what religion does. Religion allows you to hide without ever having to deal with the love of self, love of money, love of pet sins. Religion says, just say a prayer, do some penance, give a couple of hail Mary’s, and your good to go. [Note: Many want a religion of convenience. They want to be comfortable rather than being challenged or truly committed. They want religion without accountability.
Warns against thinking were indispensable to God, that God needs us too much to do His work and accomplish His purposes in the world.
Warns against thinking that our Church attendance and good works will get us into heaven. Joining a Church will put you on the church’s membership roll, but not necessarily the Lamb’s Book of Life! (cf. Rom. 9:30-33, Rev. 13:8, 21:27)
Teaches what counts with the Lord are lives that are true to God, not ones that merely look and sound religious.
Teaches how hypocrites are never without holes of refuge which they need to be rescued from. All hypocrites bear themselves upon something in order to find freedom from the judgments of God. Until hypocrites are hard-pressed, they will continue to sleep in their sins or indulge in licentious behaviors.
Teaches how God often confronts us of our pride, stripping away the good we may find within ourselves, that we may see our inadequacy, repent and turn to Him for Salvation. Will you be open enough to acknowledge that no matter how good, smart, or successful you are, your still a sinner who needs to repent? (cf. Matt. 5:3, Rom. 7:18, Philp. 3:7-8, 2-Peter. 3:9)
Teaches to get new life, we must come to God on His terms, not through religious pedigree, associations, or organizations. Good religious rituals, practices, and observances can be a benefit, but only God’s power can produce new life.
-Abraham as our Father-Meaning: John is referring to the Patriarch “Abraham” of the Old Testament as found in the book of Genesis. Whom God had first appeared too and made a promise, saying; “Leave your country and go to a land I will show you”. And “I will make you into a great nation”. And “By your seed all peoples will be blessed”.-(Gen. 12:1-9) Scripture records how Abraham, in a act of great faith, believed God and left Ur of the Chaldeans (today Southern Iraq) and journeyed to the land of Canaan,-(today Israel) eventually becoming the ancestral father of the Nation of Israel.-(Heb. 11:8-10, 11:17-19) The people that John the Baptist was speaking in the wilderness were Abraham’s descendants. John by telling them NOT to say “We have Abraham for our father” was warning them against thinking that their Jewish ancestry and physical descent would bring them under God’s Covenant promises given to Abraham and Save them. Similarly, what John says here also applies to us. Just because your the elect, just because your a child of God, just because you go to church, doesn’t mean a thing if you don’t have the Saving faith of Abraham that is believing on Jesus for Salvation. (cf. Rom. 4:11-25, 11:17-22)
-out of these stones–Meaning: Some believe that John was pointing literally to certain stones that lay near him on the banks of the Jordan river. Others understand by “These stones” John was referring to the Gentiles standing on the rivers edge. Comparable to stones, both for the hardness of heart and their idolatry worship. That God would raise a spiritual seed of Abraham even out of the hardest sinners. This is more than just a historical remark in setting the stage for the inclusion of the Gentiles in God’s Saving plan. Which will eventually be fulfilled a few years later as the Gospel moves out into the world and wins hundreds of thousands of Gentile converts who will walk in the same faith and same obedience of Abraham.-(cf. Gal. 3:29) (Note: This pronouncement can also be both a source of hope and relief, as well as humbling & liberating. “Humbling” in the sense that it deflates any idea that God had chosen us because of who we are and what we’ve achieved. (cf. Eph. 2:8, Deut. 9:4-6) “Freeing” in the sense that it removes the notion that everything is dependent on our own effort and power. It relieves the duty of thinking that competence and perfection is dependent entirely on us. It brings hope that no matter how fallen and lost, bewildered and broken, we can look with faith to God for help.) (cf. Heb. 8:10, Ezek. 36:27)
In this day and age you probably won’t find anyone banking their Salvation on Abraham. You won’t find someone saying; “I’m Saved because of Abraham”. But you will find people saying I’m good with God because “I’m a very religious person and go to church regularly”. Or they’ll say; “I’m basically a good person at heart, and that’s all that God asks”. Or they’ll respond with something like; “Oh sure, I know I’m Saved because I was baptized or I was raised in the Church”. Or they’ll respond; “I know I’m Saved because I responded to an alter call”, or “I attended a Billy Graham crusade”, “I signed a decision card”. Maybe your trusting in your Church membership? Maybe it’s your work for God, your morality, or your involvement in various ministries. Or maybe its based on a prayer you once said, or your baptism as a basis for Saving faith.? Or maybe it’s something else — Maybe it’s how good you are, how much you help others, or how knowledgeable you are in the bible. Or maybe its thousands of other things? If any of these things describe you, please, I encourage you, right now to repent and ask Jesus into your life as Lord & Savior. Will you pray; “Lord Jesus, I have been going my own way, thinking its about outward things and what I do, and not about what you have already done for me. Thank you for dying on the cross to deal with every barrier I have put up between you and me. Please come and take first place in my life. Amen.”
Even truly sincere believers, if not careful, can start to think that being a Christian simply means acknowledging certain facts “I must be a Christian, because I agree with Church doctrine and what other informed Christian teachers say. They tell me Jesus was born of the virgin Mary, and I agree with that. They tell me that Jesus was the Son of God who died on the cross for my sins and rose from the dead three days later, and I agree with that. They tell me that the Bible is the inspired Word of God, and I agree with that. They tell me God exists as three distinct Persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, and I agree with that. So because I agree with all these facts, I must be a Christian, I must be safe, I must be okay.” That has so often been what we think it means to be a Christian – acknowledge the fundamental truths and accept them as such. And, to be fair, you couldn’t claim to be a Christian without acknowledging those truths. But just giving mere credence and nodding your head to a set of facts about Jesus is not Saving faith. It’s a heart that is believing and resting in the person and work of Jesus that counts. It’s not the amount of facts that Saves us, but the object of our faith. (cf. Matt. 2:4-6)
EXCUSES OFTEN USED TODAY…….
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I was raised in the Church
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I was baptized as an infant
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My parents/family are Christians
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I live in a country with Christian values
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I attended a Billy Graham Crusade
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I answered an Alter Call
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My daddy was a pastor of our Church
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I signed a Church decision card
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I recited a prayer
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I gave a large financial contribution to the Church
THINGS WE RETREAT INTO……..
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Our Church membership, attendance, involvement, participation, support
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Our morals, character, goodness
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Our religious practices, observances, rituals
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Our good works, deeds, charity, giving, generosity
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Our ministry, service, leadership, evangelism
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Our defending, minimizing, blaming, excusing, justifying, rationalizing
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Our reputation, image, standing
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Our jokes, humor, glib, cavalier
(For more Applications get the Whole Book)
(All material is copyrighted and may be used for preaching, teaching, and instructing. And not for publication in any form without the written permission of the author.)
- Posted by David Costa/
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